Legislation to deal with the nationwide opioid crisis including four bills written by Virginia Senator Mark Warner, has just passed the Senate Finance Committee.

Warner’s bills will help to expand telehealth care with live video interactions to make it easier for healthcare providers to treat patients no matter where they live, and deal with a crisis that is getting worse.

“Opioid overdoses are now the leading cause of accidental death in Virginia, surpassing car accidents and gun violence,” said Warner.

He says UVA’s Center for Telehealth, established in 1994, has become a national model, serving more than 51,000 patients, but that outdated federal laws restrict Medicare coverage. His legislation would correct that and expand Medicaid coverage as well.

Now part of the HEAL Act, his bills passed the Senate Finance Committee 27-0 and will now go to the Senate floor.